Box



4 w, 1935. A; E. cHEsLE 2,023,992

BOX

Filed May 2, 1935 Patented Dec. 10, 1935 VUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 8 Claims.

My present invention is concerned more especially with ornamental boxes of the type used in the home for jewels, cigarettes and the like.

As conductive to a clear understanding of the invention, it is noted that ornamental boxes of this type when made or" wood, are subject to ready coming oir or" the decorations which are commonly cemented thereto and this as a consequence or" the warping of the wood. This is especially objectionable where the., ornament is of mirrored panels, since the mirror backing becomes partly or wholly stripped from the glass when warping occurs. Where felt or other compressible material is secured to the wooden body, to serve as a compressible mount for the glass, metal or other ornamental covering, the warping difculty may be alleviated, but the layer of felt is exposed to view at the upper edge of the box and detracts materially from its ornamental character and saleability.

An object of the present invention is to provide a box or similar article of the above type, in which the glass, metal or other ornamental covering remains securely in place on the wooden box despite warping of the wood, and in which, nevertheless, the ornamental panel appears to be in direct contact with the wood and the ornamental character of the box is in no way impaired.

Another object is to provide a construction of the above type, which can be assembled with the utmost facility, without resort to special skill or accuracy of manufacture.

In the accompanying drawing in which are shown one or more of various possible embodiments of the several features of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a box with parts broken away to reveal the interior construction,

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view in n transverse cross-section showing the relation of the parts before cementing the ornamental panels in place, and

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing the relation of the parts when completely assembled.

Referring to the drawing, the box presents a wooden structure having a front wall ID, a back wall I I and end walls I2 and I3 properly bevelled and cemented together at I4 and to the floor I5 according to conventional practice. The wooden cover I6 is connected to the back wall I I by appropriate conventional hinges I1 and has bevelled edges I8 cooperating with the corresponding bevels on the front, rear and end walls.

According to the present invention, the front, rear and end walls after the box has been assembled, are slightly countersunk at 2E! throughout the respective lengths thereof and along widths somewhat less than the height of the box, 5 the countersunk portions being somewhat spaced from the upper and lower rims of the box, to afford upper and lower ledges 2| and 22. The major part of each countersunk portion is covered by compressible material, preferably felt. For 10 this purpose, separate strips of felt of ther desired width or length may be used, but preferably a single strip of felt 23 of substantially the peripheral length of the box and of width somewhat less than the height of the countersunk portion 29 extends almost completely about the box, within the countersunk portion 2G, and is secured in place 'as by nails 24. The felt is of thickness at least equal to the depth of the countersink, but preferably of slightly greater thickness, as best shown in Fig. 3.

The ornamental panels of rigid material, preferably bevelled glass mirror-backed as at 26, is adhesively bonded to the felt 23. For this purpose, the felt 23 and the mirror back 26 both, are 25 preferably coated with shellac and then pressed together in appropriate clampv appliances, thereby packing together and compressing the felt, as best shown in Fig. 4, and causing the glass panel 25 to come substantially though not quite into 30 direct face to face engagement at its upper and lower ends with the corresponding ledges 2I and 22 flanking the countersunk portion 20. Preferably the bottom of the box is covered with a layer of felt 21 cemented thereover, according to con- 35` ventional practice.

While the glass or equivalent rigid ornamental cover panel may be cemented in conventional manner, to a layer of felt, covering the entire area of the hinged wooden cover backing I6, it is preferred to countersink the said backing as at 28 to afford a peripheral ledge 29, to cover said countersunk portion by a plurality of narrow strips 30 of felt nailed thereto as at -3I and to cement the glass ornamental cover plate 32 451' preferably mirror backed at 33, directly to said felt area, so that the glass comes substantially into face to face engagement with the ledge 29, which frames the felt. The glass panel 32 preferably extends beyond the wooden backing to come flush with the face of the glass covered side and end walls.

By the arrangement described, it is apparent that the warping of the wood in no way interferes with the security of attachment of the glass or other rigid panels to the box. The compressibility of the felt accommodates such warping. It is also seen that the felt is effectively concealed from view, the exposed edge of the open box showing the glass or other rigid ornamental panel substantially in direct engagement with the wooden structure of the box.

It is, of course, understood that it is suicient for present purposes that the upper partsof the box walls, slightly thicker than the main areas of said walls, determine ledge 2i which conceals the felt when the glass panel is in place. The felt in that event would be exposed at the lower ends of the box walls, but would be concealed by the felt 2l under the floor of the box. It is also apparent that in the latter arrangement the oor piece i5 of the box might correspond closely in dimensions to the dimensions determined by the ledges 2i at the upper rim of the box, so that the rim of said bottom would afford the lower ledge 22 for the countersunk area, to accommodate the felt.

It will thus be seen that there is herein described an article in which the several features of this invention are embodied, and which article in service attains the various objects of the invention and is Well suited to meet the requirements of practical use.

As many changes could be made in the above construction, and many apparently widely diiTerent embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. An ornamental panel comprising a stiff `Abacking of warpable material having its face countersunk along areas spaced from the rim thereof, compressible material secured to said countersunk area, and a hard, decorative facing pressed against and adhesively bonded to said compressible area, with the edge of said hard backing and pressed against and adhesively secured to said felt, and substantially engaging the exposed rims of said backing. Y

3. A decorative wooden box having rectangular upright walls slightly countersunk at their outer faces along areas spaced from the upper rim of said box, felt strips superposed over said countersunk areas and secured to said box andv of thickness at least equal to the depth of the countersink and panels of glass or the like superposed over and completely covering the respective walls and adhesively bonded to said felt layers, each exposed upper panel edge substantially engaging the upper rim of the wall on which it is mounted.

4. An ornamental box comprising a wooden structure having side and end walls, each of said walls being slightly undercut along the length thereof, and along a width spaced from the upper and lower edges of the respective Walls, a strip of felt extending substantially about the box and accommodated in the countersunk portions and of width less than the height of said countersink, said strip secured to the respective wooden walls, and glass panels covering the respective Woodenwalls and cemented to the corresponding lengths of felt throughout substantially the area thereof and pressed thereagainst, with the upper and lower edges of said glass panels substantially engaging the corresponding edges of the wooden walls.

5. An ornamental box comprising a wooden structure having a bottom, front, back and end walls, each of said walls being slightly countersunk through an area spaced somewhat from the upper and lower edges of the corresponding walls, a strip of felt of width less than the height of said countersink extending substantially about the box structure and lodged in the countersink and secured in place by nails or the like, glass panels of areas corresponding to those of the wooden walls and cemented to the corresponding lengths of felt throughout the areas thereof, and in substantially direct engagement at the upper and lower edges thereof, with the corresponding edges of the wooden box structure.

6. In a box of the character described, a bottom, a front wall, a rear wall and side walls of warpable material, the side walls resting at their lower edges upon the bottom, but spaced at their outer faces slightly from the respective rims of the bottom, the upper rims of said front, rear and end walls having narrow ledges corresponding to the protruding rims of the bottom, thereby determining a narrow countersunk region peripherally about the box, one or more felt strips lodged in said countersunk region and attached to the box and rigid ornamental panels covering the respective walls of the box, cemented to the felt and respectively adjacent to the ledge and the rim of the bottom at the corresponding upper and lower edges thereof.

7. A wooden backing for a box cover countersunk at its upper face throughout an area spaced somewhat from the various edges of said backing, one or more strips of felt lodged in said countersunk portion and secured to said backing and a rigid ornamental covering cemented to said felt body and substantially engaging the rim of the cover backing beyond the countersunk portion.

8. In a wooden box of the character described, walls having countersunk areas spaced from the respective rims of the box and determining rim ledges, layers of felt secured in said countersunk areas, panels of glass with mirror backing thereon, superposed over the respective walls of the box and covering the same, and adhesively bonded tothe felt strips, with the rims of the glass panelssubstantially in contact with the corresponding rim ledges of the wooden walls.

' f ABRAHAM E. CHESLER. 

